Street Harassment and Sluts

there is no excuse for street harassment

I’m currently studying abroad in Quito, Ecuador, and I love nearly all of it so far. One of the things I do NOT love, however, is the prevalence of harassment here. I’m kind of accustomed to harassment because I go to school in Philadelphia. Usually when guys yell, “I loove youuu!” or call us pretty and stuff we’re on the street and they’re in cars, or we can easily get away from them.

However, last Friday, a few friends and I had to sit diagonally across from some 3 drunk harassers while we were trying to enjoy a French-fry break from our discoteca-night. And they would not give up. We ignored them for a while, and then one of them came over with …

Starbucks, Sexual Harassment and Teens

hey there, beautiful.

It is not a secret: I am addicted to coffee. There was a time in my life when I was ignorant to the bliss that accompanies those deliciously bitter beans. I was cynical, sarcastic, and tired. Now I am cynical…sarcastic…and a little less tired (read: manic) until I crash! Maybe the effect of coffee on my life is found less in its benefits and more in an unhealthy chemical-dependency-like-addiction. Hm.Either way, I’m in that place in my life where I know every Starbucks barrista in my neighborhood’s name, life story and favorite frappuccino flavor.

So when I heard that a while back there was a pretty significant sexual harassment case against Starbucks involving a teen girl, I was pretty bummed. I actually felt personally let down – …